As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
The right to issue orders, give commands, enforce obedience,
initiate action, and make necessary decisions commensurate with rank
or assignment as provided for in the State of New Jersey laws, regulations,
and orders and the rules, policies and procedures of the Department.
Authority may be delegated by those so designated. Acts performed
without proper authority or authorization shall be considered to be
in violation of the rules.
Vertical lines of communication, authority, and responsibility
within the organizational structure of the Department. (See Appendix
A.[1])
The Paramus Office of Emergency Management is a department
of the Borough in compliance with N.J.S.A. App. A:9-40.
A document detailing the performance of a specific activity
or method of operation. "Directive" includes:
GENERAL ORDERBroadly based directive dealing with policy and procedure and affecting one or more organizational subdivisions of the Department.
PERSONNEL ORDERA directive initiating and announcing a change in the assignment, rank, or status of personnel.
SPECIAL ORDERA directive dealing with a specific circumstance or event that is usually self-canceling.
Any services, including mitigation, planning, preparedness,
response and recovery, provided by the Paramus Office of Emergency
Management.
The action indicated is permitted.
Any written or oral directive issued by a supervisor to any
subordinate or group of subordinates in the course of duty.
A statement of the Department's principles that provides
the basis for the development of procedures and directives.
A written statement providing specific direction for performing
Department activities. Procedures are implemented through policies
and directives.
The action required is mandatory.
A member who is appointed annually to the Office of Emergency
Management staff by the Paramus Mayor and Council.
A staff member assigned to a position requiring the exercise
of immediate supervision over the activities of other employees.
[1]
Editor's Note: Said appendix is on file in the Borough offices.
A.
The Office of Emergency Management shall consist of one Emergency
Management Coordinator appointed by the Mayor for a three-year term
under the direction of state law, four Deputy Emergency Coordinators
who are appointed by the Coordinator with the approval of the Mayor
under the direction of state law. The Department also includes 13
Assistant Coordinators, two specialists, a maximum of 10 support staff,
a maximum of five interns, and a Drone Support Team.
B.
The Office of Emergency Management maintains a Community Emergency
Response Team (CERT) comprised of community volunteer members trained
in immediate emergency assistance during disasters and assisting local
emergency managers in a variety of projects and exercises. CERT will
be managed by the CERT Team Leader appointed from among the members
of the support staff.
All Office of Emergency Management vehicles, equipment, and
materials are the property of the Borough of Paramus, and ownership
shall remain with the Borough of Paramus, and all expenses and costs
shall be incurred by the Borough of Paramus for the proper maintenance
and operation of the Department.
No person shall be eligible to become a member of the Office
of Emergency Management of the Borough of Paramus unless such person
shall possess and provide proof of the following qualifications:
The name of the applicant shall be provided to the Emergency
Management Coordinator, who will ensure that the Borough application
process is followed.
A.
The names of the members shall be written upon the personnel roster
maintained by the Borough Clerk.
B.
A member shall be issued a photo identification card. This photo
identification card shall be surrendered to the Coordinator upon request
or whenever a member has been formally suspended from the Department
or upon the member's resignation.
C.
Active: Any member who is physically able to perform all duties,
including on-call duty time and training, and other duties assigned
by the Coordinator or his designee.
D.
Probationary: Any person, upon successfully completing all of the
requirements, shall be classified as a "probationary member" for a
period of not less than one year. During the course of this period,
the probationary member will be required to perform all duties set
forth in the rules and regulations of the Department. The probationary
period may be extended due to the unavailability of any required courses.
Upon successful completion of the above requirements, the member shall
be appointed as a regular member.
[Amended 6-30-2021 by Ord. No. 2021-27]
The Paramus Office of Emergency Management established its internship
program to promote its community outreach efforts. The interns will
be exposed to the various fundamentals of emergency management and
shall render assistance to the Department under the supervision of
the Emergency Management Coordinator.
A.
Application requirements:
(1)
Must be a Bergen County resident for a minimum of one year;
(2)
Must be a minimum of 16 years of age;
(3)
Must provide parental consent if under the age of 18;
(4)
Must submit to a medical examination and a criminal/driver's background
check;
(5)
Must participate in drug and alcohol screening;
(6)
Must maintain passing grades if in high school; and
(7)
Must commit to a minimum internship of one year.
B.
Membership: The intern will serve for a minimum of one year. Following
that period, an underage member may request an extension of their
internship experience as an associate member of the Department. Members
who are 18 and older may apply for an opening on the Emergency Management
staff. If there is no opening, a member can apply for a volunteer
support position. Any intern is eligible to join the Community Emergency
Response Team (CERT).
A.
The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program helps train
people to be better prepared to respond to emergency situations in
their communities. When emergencies happen, CERT members can give
critical support to first responders, provide immediate assistance
to victims, and organize spontaneous volunteers at a disaster site.
CERT members can also help with nonemergency projects that help improve
the safety of the community.
B.
Application requirements:
(1)
Must be a Paramus resident, an employee of the Borough, or reside
in a town that does not have an active CERT program.
(2)
Must be 16 years or older.
(3)
Must provide parental consent if under the age of 18.
(4)
Must submit to a medical examination and a criminal/driver's background
check.
(5)
Must maintain passing grades if in high school.
C.
Membership: A qualified candidate will be accepted as a probationary
CERT member for a period of one year. After the probationary period
and completion of all required training, the candidate will be accepted
as a regular CERT member. CERT members are volunteers and are not
eligible for compensation.
A.
Stipend program:
(1)
The Coordinator, Deputy Coordinators, Assistant Coordinators and
specialists of the Paramus Office of Emergency Management (hereinafter
referred to as "O.E.M.") who shall respond to 40% of town-wide emergencies,
to include, but not limited to, fires, floods, snow emergencies, lost
persons, active shooter or any other activity deemed a Borough emergency,
to which he/she is assigned or attends during any one calendar month
shall be entitled to an allowance fixed by the Mayor and Council,
in the amount of $500 per month, in the amount of $600 per month effective
July 1, 2018, or in accordance with any effective changes to the Paramus
Volunteer Fire Department stipend program. Effective January 1, 2019,
the monthly allowance will be equal to $700 per month. Effective January
1, 2020, the monthly allowance will be equal to $800 per month. To
be eligible to receive the monthly allowance, each member will receive
credit for drills at the Life Safety Complex or any other sanctioned
day and/or night exercises or meetings. Additionally, eligible members
must attend a minimum of six monthly training sessions with O.E.M.
Should any member be unavailable to attend a monthly training session
due to a conflict with their work schedule, they will be afforded
the opportunity to attend a make-up session to be arranged with the
O.E.M. Coordinator and/or any one of the Deputy Coordinators. Any
O.E.M. eligible member attending an approved training class, whether
at the Bergen County O.E.M. training center in Mahwah, or any other
official training center, in or out of county, will be afforded credit
for the monthly training requirement in the month they attend the
classes. Advanced permission from the Coordinator and/or any one of
the Deputy Coordinators will be required for members to receive credit
for attending outside training classes as well as virtual online training.
O.E.M. members are also assigned to be "on call" for two calendar
weeks per duty assignment three to four times per calendar year, depending
on their scheduled rotation. This assignment places the member on
24/7 status during this time period and will, if not excused by the
O.E.M. Coordinator and/or any one of the Deputy Coordinators, respond
to all emergencies necessitating O.E.M. assistance. Many of the O.E.M.
members are also volunteer members of the Paramus Volunteer Fire Department
and Paramus Volunteer Rescue Squad. These members are covered by the
existing stipend ordinance of the Borough. Therefore, under no circumstances
will an existing member of the Paramus Volunteer Fire Department or
Paramus Volunteer Rescue Squad be eligible to receive two stipend
disbursements during any given month. The accumulated moneys for each
of the three months in each quarter shall be paid to the member at
the first pay period for the following month. For example, stipends
earned from July 1 to September 30 will be paid on the last Mayor
and Council meeting of October; stipends earned from October 1 to
December 31 will be paid on the last Mayor and Council meeting of
January, etc.
(2)
Annual review of stipend. During the month of January of each succeeding
year, the Mayor and Council will review the allowance provisions and
make any changes it shall deem necessary.
(3)
Construal of payments. The payments set forth above shall constitute
reimbursement for various expenses which may be incurred by the volunteer
members of the Office of Emergency Management in the faithful performance
of their duties and shall not be considered as salary, nor shall such
payments be considered to in any way construe the creating of a paid
or partially paid Office of Emergency Management within the Borough
of Paramus.
(4)
Yearly clothing allowance. There will be no clothing allowance approved
at this time. This provision will be reviewed by the Mayor and Council
yearly.
(5)
Verification of attendance. The O.E.M. Coordinator shall institute
an authentication procedure for the verification of attendance which
shall be approved annually by the governing body. Such procedure shall
include, but shall not be limited to, a requirement that each eligible
member of O.E.M. personally sign a roster or an approved witnessed
absentee roster at the completion of and after each emergency indicating
his or her attendance at such emergency, with such signatures to be
witnessed by the ranking member in charge. Each eligible member of
O.E.M. shall maintain on file a specimen of his/her signature; and
the forms utilized in recording the attendance for each call shall
be subject to the random and periodic audit under the direction of
the Borough Administrator. These verification procedures will affect
all members of O.E.M. with the exception of the Coordinator and the
Deputy Coordinators, who, by virtue of their position within the O.E.M.,
will not be subject to the verification of each emergency responded
to within the confines of the Borough of Paramus, as many times they
are required to remain at an emergency for extended periods of time
and the verification procedures presently under consideration would
not and could not become applicable. The O.E.M. Coordinator and the
Deputy Coordinators will be responsible to the Borough Administrator
to verify their attendance at each emergency if their names do not
appear on the attendance roster.
(6)
Execution of waivers. No member of O.E.M. shall be entitled to any
payment hereunder until he/she shall first have executed a waiver
to be prepared under the direction of the office of the Borough Clerk,
waiving any and all claim to a pension, civil service or employment
status of any kind whatsoever as a result of receiving payment under
the provisions of this chapter.
(7)
When effective; expiration; payments. This chapter shall take effect
January 1, 2016, upon passage. Payments shall be calculated and made
within the calendar quarter immediately following the preceding quarter
as outlined above.
(8)
Biannual report by Coordinator. The O.E.M. Coordinator shall biannually
report the effect of such payments on the membership and attendance
and such other information as may be directed by the Mayor and Council
regarding the operation of the program on the volunteer O.E.M. as
a unit.
(9)
No new rights/no vacancies. Unless expressly stated otherwise or
required by law, this chapter shall not create any rights that did
not exist before this chapter, and this chapter shall not be deemed
to create any vacancies unless the law requires otherwise.
B.
Insurance: Members shall be covered by worker's compensation insurance
and the Borough group life insurance. In the event of a line-of-duty
death, the Borough shall ensure that all applications are processed
and procedures followed for any eligible state or federal benefits.
All members of the Department are covered under N.J.S.A. App. A:9-57
by disability and life insurance if an injury or death results while
working for the Department.
C.
Resignation: All resignations must be submitted in writing to the
O.E.M. Coordinator. All Borough property and the identification credential
must be returned upon their resignation.
D.
Suspension and expulsion: Charges for violations of any rules may
be filed by the O.E.M. Deputy or Assistant Coordinator. The charges
will be forwarded to the Command Staff for investigation. The Command
Staff will submit recommendations to the Coordinator for final disposition.
